Iran Press/ Asia: Khajeh Shamsul Din Mohammad Shirazi, known as Hafez, is one of the greatest poets in Persian culture and literature, who was born in Iran in the 7th century AH; Mehr 20 in the Persian calendar (October 11) is named after the world-famous poet to commemorate him.
Lee Ning, the dean of the Middle-East studies faculty of Beijing University said at the ceremony that Hafez was an influential figure in Iran who had memorized the holy Quran and the icon of Iranian culture and civilization.
As another key speaker, the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Beijing Mohsen Bakhtiari described Hafez as an international literary figure who, more than other Persian poets, seeks sympathy among human beings so that he could alleviate the spiritual pain of those who read his poems.
Chi Wandong, professor of Persian language at Beijing University of International Studies and translator of Hafez Divan (collection of poems) in Chinese said a message in Persian: So far, a lot of research has been done on Hafez's ghazals (a kind of poem), and all students have benefited from them."
Divan is very precious to Iranians so every Iranian family has it in their house. Iranian people gather to read Divan-e Hafez on different occasions such as Nowruz or Yalda Night.
Still, Iran's Cultural Attache to Beijing said that Hafez left a significant effect on the world's literature and the translation of his poetry into more than 40 languages indicates the truth.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832), the most renowned poet of German literature was deeply interested in Eastern literature and above all, Hafez poems which increasingly awakened his interest in Persian literature. The first impulse of Goethe in imitating Hafez was a framework to compose romantic poems but later the mystical aspects of Hafez's poems attracted him.
At the meeting of Hafez International Day, student groups from Beijing's Universities of Culture and Language, International Business, and International Studies chanted Hafez's poems and songs together.
Hafez is believed to have been influenced by many authors before him like Omar Khayyam (who is also one of the most significant Iranian figures in mathematics, astronomy, and poetry). However, many critics symbolize Hafez as a bee that flies over different flowers to make the most delicious honey.
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